Mississauga IceDogs

Mississauga IceDogs
CityMississauga, Ontario
LeagueOntario Hockey League
ConferenceEastern
DivisionCentral
FoundedJanuary 21, 1997 (1997-01-21)
Operated1998–2007
Home arenaHershey Centre
ColoursRed, Black, White, Gray
       
Franchise history
1998–2007Mississauga IceDogs
2007–presentNiagara IceDogs
Championships
Regular season titles2004–05 Emms Trophy
Playoff championships2003–04 Bobby Orr Trophy

The Mississauga IceDogs were a Canadian junior ice hockey team in Mississauga, Ontario. They played in the Ontario Hockey League from 1998 to 2007. A sale relocated the team to St. Catharines, Ontario for the 2007–08 season and they are now called the Niagara IceDogs.

History

From 1998 to 2002, the IceDogs enjoyed little success, finishing last in the OHL's Central Division every year. During this building phase, the team had six head coaches within the span of 4 years, including the owner, Don Cherry. Mississauga drafted first overall each year, leading to two rookies of the year, including one of the highest touted NHL prospects in Jason Spezza.

The IceDogs played their home games at the Hershey Centre, and hosted the OHL All-Star Game in 2000.[1]

The team changed ownership in 2002 with venture capitalist Joel Albin acquiring the team from owners Don Cherry, Retrocom, sports agent Elliott Kerr, and Trevor Whiffer - lawyer of Don Cherry and the general manager of the IceDogs'.[2]

In the 2002–03 season, the IceDogs finished fourth in the Central Division and made the playoffs for the first time in franchise history, but lost in the first round in five games against the Ottawa 67's.

2003–04 was the IceDogs' best season. The team finished second in the Central Division, two points behind the division champion Toronto St. Michael's Majors, and third overall in the Eastern Conference.

In the first round of the playoffs, the IceDogs defeated the Oshawa Generals in seven games, winning their first-ever playoff series. The IceDogs were down three games to two against the Barrie Colts in the second round but managed to come back and win the series in seven games. The surprise IceDogs then upset the St. Michael's Majors in the Eastern Conference Championship series in six games to win the Bobby Orr Trophy and earn their first-ever trip to the Ontario Hockey League finals. The dream ended there as they fell to the Guelph Storm in four straight games in the OHL final, losing the fourth game at the Hershey Centre.

The 2004–05 season was another record setting season for the IceDogs. They won their first ever Central Division title and finished first in the Eastern Conference with 81 points. Despite regular season success, the IceDogs were upset in the first round of the playoffs by the eighth-seeded St. Michael's Majors in five games. In 2005–06, the IceDogs started rebuilding and missed the playoffs again.

Change in ownership

On July 12, 2006, Eugene Melnyk, owner of the Toronto St. Michael's Majors and the NHL's Ottawa Senators, bought the Mississauga IceDogs.

After the 2006–07 season, Melnyk sold the IceDogs, and moved the Majors to the Hershey Centre in Mississauga.[3]

On January 8, 2007, Toronto businessman Tom Bitove proposed to buy the team with plans to move to Niagara Falls,[4] but city council declined the proposal to build a new arena.[5] As an alternative, the team approached the City of St. Catharines about moving the team into Jack Gatecliff Arena in the downtown core. St. Catharines City Council voted on a leasing arrangement on April 23, 2007, which passed.[6]

Bill Burke bought the IceDogs and relocated the team to St. Catharines in time for the 2007–08 season, to be known as the Niagara IceDogs.[6] The IceDogs played their final game in Mississauga on April 1, 2007, losing in game 5 of the Eastern Conference quarterfinals at home to the Sudbury Wolves.

Coaches

List of head coaches:[7]

Players

Award winners

Season Player Award(s) Recognition Source
1999–2000 Jason Spezza Jack Ferguson Award First overall draft pick [8]
2000–01 Patrick Jarrett Jack Ferguson Award First overall draft pick [9]
2001–02 Patrick O'Sullivan Jack Ferguson Award First overall draft pick [10]
Emms Family Award OHL rookie of the year [11]
CHL Rookie of the Year Rookie of the year
2002–03 Rob Schremp Jack Ferguson Award First overall draft pick [12]
Emms Family Award OHL rookie of the year [13]
2004–05 Michael Ouzas OHL Goaltender of the Year Goaltender of the year [14]

NHL alumni

List of IceDogs alumni who played in the National Hockey League (NHL):[15]

Season-by-season results

Regular season and playoffs results:[7]

Legend: GP = Games played, W = Wins, L = Losses, T = Ties, OTL = Overtime losses, SL = Shoot-out losses, Pts = Points, GF = Goals for, GA = Goals against

Memorial Cup champions OHL champions OHL runners-up
Season GP W L T OTL SL Pts Win % GF GA Standing Playoffs
1998–99 68 4 61 3 — — 11 0.081 145 426 5th Central Did not qualify
1999–2000 68 9 56 1 2 — 21 0.154 160 346 5th Central Did not qualify
2000–01 68 3 56 7 2 — 15 0.110 157 380 5th Central Did not qualify
2001–02 68 11 47 6 2 — 32 0.235 212 327 5th Central Did not qualify
2002–03 68 23 31 11 3 — 60 0.441 212 231 4th Central Lost conference quarter-final (Ottawa 67's) 4–1
2003–04 68 36 21 7 4 — 83 0.610 217 199 2nd Central Won conference quarter-final (Oshawa Generals) 4–3
Won conference semi-final (Barrie Colts) 4–3
Won conference final (Toronto St. Michael's Majors) 4–2
Lost OHL championship (Guelph Storm) 4–0
2004–05 68 34 21 12 1 — 81 0.596 207 172 1st Central Lost conference quarter-final (Toronto St. Michael's Majors) 4–1
2005–06 68 21 40 — 5 2 49 0.360 192 299 5th Central Did not qualify
2006–07 68 43 21 — 0 4 90 0.662 326 251 2nd Central Lost conference quarter-final (Sudbury Wolves) 4–1

Uniforms and logos

The IceDogs' colours are red, white, black and silver. The logo is styled after Don Cherry's pet bull terrier named Blue. It shows a snarling dog overtop of the IceDogs name with a maple leaf in the background. The original logo (inset right) looked like an ice crystalized dog with red eyes in front of a big letter "M" with a maple leaf in the corner. The logo was redesigned after their 5th season with the change in ownership.[16][17]

See also

References

  1. ^ Jordan, Kevin (September 21, 2024). "Paramount Fine Foods Centre". The OHL Arena Guide. Retrieved March 13, 2026.
  2. ^ "Cherry to sell stake in OHL's IceDogs: report". CBC. May 4, 2002. Retrieved November 12, 2024.
  3. ^ [1] Archived August 10, 2006, at the Wayback Machine
  4. ^ http://www.mississauga.com/mi/sports/story/3836022p-4438674c.html
  5. ^ The North Bay Nugget - Ontario, CA
  6. ^ a b St. Catharines Standard - Ontario, CA
  7. ^ a b "Mississauga IceDogs Statistics and History". HockeyDB. Retrieved March 13, 2026.
  8. ^ "As expected, Spezza goes to the 'Dogs". Waterloo Region Record. Kitchener, Ontario. The Canadian Press. June 7, 1999. p. C3.
  9. ^ Montague, Bill (June 5, 2000). "Sault's Jarrett top Dog in OHL draft". The Sault Star. Sault St. Marie, Ontario. p. 1.
  10. ^ "Dogs make American top OHL draft pick". Toronto Star. May 6, 2001. p. E12.
  11. ^ Andrusevich, Rob (May 22, 2002). "O'Sullivan honoured". The Mississauga News. p. A8.; Andrusevich, Rob (May 22, 2002). "O'Sullivan top rookie". The Mississauga News. p. A12.
  12. ^ McCarthy, Gary (May 8, 2002). "IceDogs counting on Schremp to lead the way". The Mississauga News. p. A12.
  13. ^ "Schremp named OHL's top rookie". The Sun Times. Owen Sound, Ontario. The Canadian Press. May 3, 2003. p. A12.
  14. ^ "2004–05 Ontario Hockey League Award Winners". Windsor Star. June 7, 2005. p. D5.
  15. ^ "Mississauga IceDogs all-time player list". HockeyDB. Retrieved March 13, 2026.
  16. ^ "TruColor | Ontario Hockey League Official Colors (1980-1981 through present)". March 8, 2024.
  17. ^ Creamer, Chris. "Mississauga IceDogs Logos History". Sports Logos. Retrieved March 13, 2026.
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